Lincoln, Truth meet
Truth meets with President Lincoln. She writes:
He showed as much kindness and consideration to the colored persons as to the whites — if there was any difference, more.
Truth: I appreciate you, for you are the best president who has ever taken the seat.
Lincoln: I expect you have reference to my having emancipated the slaves in my proclamation.
Truth: I thank God that you were the instrument selected by him and the people to do it. I had never heard of you before you were president.Lincoln smilingly replied: I had heard of you many times before that.
Sojourner Truth born in Swartekill, NY
Sojourner Truth is born Isabella Baumfree, one of as many as 12 children of James and Elizabeth Baumfree in the town of Swartekill, Ulster County, New York. Her father is a slave captured in modern-day Ghana; her mother is the daughter of slaves from Guinea. The Baumfree family is owned by Colonel Hardenbergh and lives at the colonel’s estate in Esopus, NY, 95 miles north of New York City.
I was given the name Isabella, and was called ‘Bell.’ My mother was named Elizabeth, and called Betsy and my father was named James…In my father’s youth he was very tall and straight. For that reason he was called “Bomefree,” which was Dutch for tree. We called my mother “Mau-mau” Bett. Mau-mau was Dutch for Mama. My parents were loyal, faithful, hard working and gave Colonel Ardinburgh no trouble. He rewarded their fidelity by allotting them a small plot of land by the mountainside. On it they could crops on weekends and evenings that they could barter on the extra food and clothing for their kids.